Towards Nutritious, Sustainable, Profitable, and Resilient Food Systems in Southern Africa…with lentils

H. A. Pswarayi

University of Nottingham

The Birth of an Idea…

  • From MAPS project,
  • and Geonutrition studies:
    • Southern Africa’s Food Systems deficient in protein, micro-nutrients.
  • From MAPS simulation:
    • lentils, most efficient for supplying these nutrients
    • because cheapest to grow and buy

Drivers of Nutrient Deficiencies…interlocking challenges

  • Government policies
  • Cropping practices
  • Climate change
  • Diets and culture

Government Policies…

  • Maize grain marketing boards guaranteeing maize markets
    • to ensure staple adequacy
  • Promoting tobacco for the export market
    • to earn foreign currency

Cropping Practices…..

  • Neglecting soil pH problems…
  • yet, most soils in region have low pH, acidic
    • due to continuous fertilizer use,
    • without promoting liming to ameliorate the problem,
  • Hence:
    • prevalence of low crop yields,
    • and inadequate food production,
    • due to reduced fertilizer efficiency, and Al toxicity.

Cropping Practices…

  • No meaningful crop rotation practices by small holders…
  • yet, legume-cereal rotations have boosted soil fertility for millenia
  • The lack of rotation practices is driven by…
    • govt policies encouraging maize and tobacco production
    • lack of viable alternative cash crops
    • and small land holdings due to population pressure

Climate change…

  • Southern Africa is prone climate change effects
    • due to its geographical location.
  • Hence:
    • frequent droughts, heat waves, erratic rainfall
    • leading to frequent crop failures…hunger…poverty,
    • and, therefore, widespread nutrient deficiencies.

Diets and Culture…

  • Regional diets are carbohydrate heavy
    • maize based
  • with limited protein intake
    • animal protein, un-affordable
    • plant proteins, not cultural
  • southern Africa consumes the least pulses in Africa
    • there is no active promotion for pulse consumption

A Strategic Solution…lentils

  • lentils are strategic because:
  • they have multiple attributes,
  • that can address the many food system challenges.

Lentils improve human health…

  • They are nutritious:
    • rich in protein,
    • rich in complex carbohydrates,
    • rich in minerals: K, Mg, Fe, Se, folate, Ca, P, Zn
    • richest in fiber, good for digestion, insulin regulation

Lentils improve soil health

  • lentils encourage good soil husbandry
  • by encouraging farmers to ameliorate soil acidity,
    • because lentils are very sensitive to acidic soils

Acidic Soils (pH 3.6)…severe stunting

Acidic Soils (pH 3.6)…susceptible to drought

Lentils are water efficient…

  • lentil crops require minimal rainfall
    • about 300 - 500 mm, annually
    • compared to maize that require about double
  • hence, lentils adapt better to shortening of rainfall seasons by climate change

Lentils reduce domestic energy consumption…

  • Because they cook in 10-30 minutes,
    • which saves energy,
    • and reduces deforestation,
  • Firewood, a primary source of domestic energy in southern Africa
    • due to low generation capacity of electricity
    • and a large, and poor rural population

Lentils improve animal health…

  • Because lentil stover is:
    • more palatable,
    • higher in digestibility,
    • nutrients: protein, Ca, and P,
    • and is better than cereal stover.

Lentils and the female gender…

  • Women have many roles in rural households:
    • labor in the fields
    • cook, collect firewood and water,
    • also head households
  • Because lentils cook quickly:
    • they lessen firewood collection
  • Lentils require minimum inputs, and less complicated to grow
    • therefore, ideal for female households

Lentils and intercropping…

  • Population growth drives land fragmentation in the region
    • leading to inadequate holdings for many rural families
  • lentils can be inter-cropped with cereals
    • raising unit land productivity
  • lentil inter-crops benefit cereals
    • because lentils fix nitrogen,
    • which improves soil fertility,
    • and crop productivity.

Lentils, a profitable cash crop…

  • Lentils have a multi-billion pound (£) international market
    • major consumers in south Asia (e.g., India)
    • where lentils are integral to daily diets
  • Canada, the largest producer, and exporter
    • mainly by large-scale prairie farmers
  • India, the second largest producer
    • mainly by small-holder farmers

How we are introducing lentils into Southern Africa…

  • At the Food Systems Level

A Food Systems Approach…

  • Focusing on production, consumption, marketing, and storage:
  • Production:
    • developing/evaluating varieties, learning agronomy
  • Consumption:
    • innovating and promoting lentil dishes
  • Marketing:
    • developing local and international markets
  • Storage: ensuring product quality

Multiple Disciplines…collaborative

  • Plant breeders, agronomists, soil scientists,
  • nutritionists, public health, extensionists,
  • Post-harvest scientists, plant protection,
  • Sociologists, Statisticians, agricultural engineers,
  • Economists, marketing, Trade,
  • Farmers, households, NGOs, policy makers.

Project at inception…

  • Awarded some small University of Nottingham funding
    • to start the journey in Malawi
  • We planted 3 pilot trials, in 3 environments,
    • to identify future breeding materials,
    • to identify suitable environments,
    • and to learn lentil agronomy.

Trials…planting

Trials…crop emergence

Trials…happy lentils

Trials…happy lentils

Trials…happy lentils

Trials…seed from trial!

Stakeholder Engagement…

  • First stakeholders workshop held in February, 2024:
  • with government research scientists, and others:
    • plant breeders, soil scientists, agronomists
    • trade officials, nutritionists
  • and academia:
    • plant breeders, agronomists, nutritionists
  • They are the future owners of the project

With Stakeholders…planning

Stakholders’ Workshop…very first!

The Stakholders…the team

The Future…

  • Immediate: evaluate, multiply lines, agronomy,
  • Medium: innovate, promote lentil dishes, crops, evaluate, agronomy
  • Long term: promote culture of rotations and lentil diets,
  • sociology studies: barriers to change,
  • economic studies: lentils and farmers’ economy,
  • soil studies: lentils and soil fertility,
  • nutrition studies: lentils and population health.

A Long journey…of a thousand partners, publications

  • Zikomo kwambili, Terima kasih
  • Siyabonga, Asante
  • Mazviita, Grazie, Obrigado
  • Twatotela, Tak, Xiexie
  • Thank you, Dhanyavaad
  • Gracias, Danke, Спасибо
  • Diolch, Merci, Arigato.